Tennessee Victim Service Providers Alliance

Dedicated state funding for victim services in Tennessee will ensure justice for victims and safety for all.

Our message to Tennessee State leaders:

Signed by more than 360 individuals, representing over 100 nonprofit organizations serving victims in all 95 counties in Tennessee.

Signed by more than 150 individuals, representing over 130 different partner agencies and local governments across Tennessee.

The impact is widespread:

20,000

children in Tennessee experience abuse and neglect each year

1 in 4

women and 1 in 7 men will experience physical violence by their intimate partner at some point during their lifetimes

Nonprofit organizations across Tennessee provide crisis response as well as services to help victims heal from their trauma.

THE PROBLEM

Tennessee is at risk of experiencing a devastating collapse of services for survivors of child abuse, elder abuse, human trafficking, domestic violence, and sexual assault. While Tennessee lawmakers have passed new laws in recent years that mandate victim services, these laws were never supported with dedicated state funding. The organizations that provide these services are now facing drastic budget cuts.

THE SOLUTION

Our state leaders need to establish a budget line item of $25 million in recurring funding for victim services to ensure justice and healing for our fellow Tennesseans, and safer communities for us all.

CONSEQUENCES OF INACTION

  • Interpersonal violence traps victims in cycles of escalating harm. Children exposed to violence often face long-lasting trauma that affects every aspect of their development. Our shelters, crisis hotlines, and outreach programs are often the only lifelines available. Without stable funding, we face service cuts and closures. Victims will have nowhere to turn during their darkest hours.

  • When victims cannot access support, the cycle of violence continues. Perpetrators who are not held accountable remain in our communities, posing a threat to everyone. It is no coincidence that mass violence offenders often have a history of interpersonal abuse.

  • Without shelters and victim support services, more victims will return to their abusers. This leads to repeated violence, dangerous law enforcement encounters, and an overburdened justice system. Prosecutors who rely on victim service providers to support witnesses will face even greater challenges in holding offenders accountable.